


Chapter 7.5: A Peaceful Problem

by Leopardmask



Category: Hermitcraft RPF
Genre: Angst, Cub has admin powers, Ender xB, Gen, Minor Body Horror, Nether Update, Respawn Mechanics, Vex Jevin, Vex Magic, admin magic, hermitcraft season 7
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-05
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:40:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25097770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leopardmask/pseuds/Leopardmask
Summary: The Nether has been transformed, and everyone’s excited to explore! Three of the hermits with special powers have all teamed up, but something has gone wrong with their magic... and with Jevin.
Comments: 12
Kudos: 58





	Chapter 7.5: A Peaceful Problem

**Author's Note:**

> This uses the events and headcanons that I’ve introduced in New ConVex and Ender Adventure, but is not necessarily canon to them. The title shows about the point in the NCV timeline when this would have taken place. Inspired by certain... problems that arose with the Nether update.
> 
> Also yes I know Jevin was actually on the team with False and Xisuma but I wanted to put the three mob-mages together, so there.

Jevin stumbled to a halt outside the town hall. He had just woken up from a restless night to his communicator reminding him that today was the big day. Their world had been updated, their old Nether destroyed, and everyone was gathering to explore it anew. 

His teammates, xB and Cub, gave him concerned looks. “Man...” xB commented. “Are you okay? You aren’t looking too good.”

Jevin forced a brief smile. “I’ll be fine. I hardly ever sleep well on update nights.”

Cub raised his eyebrows at him. “You sure you still want to go to the Nether right now? You don’t have to be part of the first-day crowd if you don’t feel like-”

“It’s fine,” Jevin repeated. “Just feeling a little stupid.”

“Oh, so totally normal,” xB winked. Jevin gave him a tired grin. He had kind of set himself up for that one.

As they waited for everyone to prepare and team up, xB started drifting in circles in a boat, almost knocking Jevin and a few other hermits over in the process. Jevin chuckled and climbed in the boat with him, glad for a good place to sit and a bit of distraction. He really was feeling bad, worse than would be expected from just a sleepless night. The most frustrating part was, he didn’t know what was wrong. The best way he could describe it to himself was “hollow” - both in mind and body. But he didn’t let any of this on to his teammates. He didn’t want to let them down, and he really did want to see the new Nether, despite how uncomfortable he always was there.

_ Maybe I should get myself a heat-resistant suit like X did, _ he thought idly as xB rowed them through the portal.

  
  
  


As soon as he went through the portal, Jevin staggered against the frame. If he were human, he probably would have thrown up. The oppressive heat slammed against him, and the disorientation of going through the portal was only making things worse. Between the heat, the portal, and his already confused state, Jevin could barely figure out what shape he was supposed to be, or whether he was even holding together at all.

A hand rested on his shoulder. It was xB, looking almost scared. “Dude?”

Jevin stared at xB for an unnervingly long time. Suddenly, he realized something was wrong. “xB... your face...” he forced out.

“My face? Why are you worrying about my face, dude?” xB frowned. “What’s wrong with it?”

“N-nothing...” Jevin stammered. “That’s... the problem.”

With that, Jevin took a shaky step backward, turned to find Cub, and lost his grip on himself, melting into an unmoving blue blob.

\-----

xB jumped back in shock as his friend melted in front of him. He frantically looked around, blinking as his eyes adjusted slowly to the low light, seeing Cub already there at Jevin’s side.

Wait. His eyes had to adjust to low light. That wasn’t right.

He squinted back toward the nearby warped forest, but couldn’t see anything there. In fact, there wasn’t much movement anywhere, apart from his fellow hermits.

\-----

“Oh geez.” Cub dropped to his knees next to the shapeless, slowly-melting pile of Jevin. “Oh man, this is bad.”

What could he do? No one knew how to handle this. Even Vex magic wouldn’t help - he hadn’t been able to use it since this morning.

_ He hadn’t been able to use Vex magic. _ The pieces clicked together. If Cub’s Vex magic had vanished, and Jevin was half Vex... of course Jevin would be in bad shape. But why would their Vex connection disappear...?

He looked up as xB returned from a quick reconnaissance flight. The two realized it at the same time. xB said it first.

“It’s Peaceful.”

Sometimes this happened to the world briefly, particularly when something major changed. All hostile mobs that weren’t marked in the code as a Player would vanish, until an admin noticed. Apparently, magic based on or granted by hostiles vanished too. Fortunately, Cub had been granted some admin power. He immediately reached into that magic reserve. His eyes started to glow not with the ice blue of the Vex, but with the pure white of Admin magic. “Come on, come on...”

Jevin’s body suddenly lit up with power and started shifting. xB blinked and closed his eyes at the bright light, hand on his chest as he felt his own magic flow through him again. Cub gasped and flinched back, the white light in his eyes flickering out.

“Cub?” xB opened his eyes, concerned. “What’s wrong? It worked!”

Cub had his hands to his head. “Vex magic,” he winced. “We can talk telepathically with each other. As soon as the magic came back - Jevin  _ screamed. _ ”

“Oh. That's not good.” xB stared at Jevin, now glowing less brightly but still trying desperately to reshape himself. He had technically managed an arm. It didn’t come up in conversation much, but xB guessed that it couldn’t be comfortable to suddenly wake up as a blob. He couldn’t even imagine the feeling. Nor trying to put himself back together from that.

Cub scooted closer again.  **Jevin? Can you talk to me?**

**Yeah.** Jevin’s “voice” was strained.  **I... can’t re-form here. Nether’s too hot... I’m too tired.**

Cub relayed this to xB. “We gotta get him out of here,” he added.

“No kidding,” xB replied. “Can we get him through the portal somehow?” Gingerly, he tried pulling on Jevin’s arm. The arm just stretched. Cub winced again, and xB dropped it. “Sorry.”

“So physically taking him anywhere is a no-go,” Cub confirmed.

“Well, there is one way of getting him back to his base quickly,” xB pointed out. He pulled out his sword, then changed his mind and switched to an axe.

“Probably the only way,” Cub decided. “And it should put him back in shape, too.” He turned back to Jevin.  **Can you hear us talking? Did you catch any of that?**

**Can’t hear you very well, no.**

**We can’t move you,** Cub explained,  **so we’ll have to kill you so you respawn at your base.**

**Perfect,** Jevin replied.  **Do it.**

“Do it,” Cub repeated to xB. xB nodded. He raised his axe, winced, then brought it down hard.

\-----

Cub and xB waited a few minutes’ grace period, collecting Jevin’s things in the meantime. Respawn could be disorienting, and it often took a little while to fully recover, especially when the conditions of the death were particularly harsh. Cub took the opportunity to access his limited Admin magic again, poking through the code. Jevin had of course been tagged as a Player, and shouldn’t have been affected that badly, Cub thought. Then he noticed a string that showed what creature’s tag was being changed. All it said was “Slime”, because of course that’s all anyone knew about Jevin when he first arrived. Maybe having the Vex part of him known and more prominent in his being, made its brief disappearance that much more devastating this time. Cub would have to talk to Xisuma about that - only X could change that part of the code.

They both jumped when their communicators buzzed.

<iJevin> I’m alright now

<iJevin> Thank you

<cubfan135> Glad to hear it! Back in proper form?

<iJevin> Still rearranging a bit, but looking good

<iJevin> Not keen on going back in the Nether today though

<cubfan135> Understandable. I think Joe offered to be a backup for anyone who couldn’t make it?

<cubfan135> The problem has been resolved, though, so when you do feel up to it again there shouldn’t be any issues

<joehillssays> I did indeed agree to be an understudy for anyone who might be feeling unwell.

<joehillssays> If you will have me, I will meet you promptly at the town hall portal.

<xBCrafted> I’ll bring your stuff to you at your base, Jevin

<iJevin> Much appreciated

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really struggling with the current chapter of New ConVex, but I'd already written this aside to upload when I need a bit more time :)


End file.
